Heavy smoke moved back into Kamloops on Thursday, as if to remind us that this summer of fire isn’t yet over. The smoke had cleared out by Friday morning, but, yes, we got the message.

In fact, officials now are saying that some of the fires could smoulder into the spring of 2018.

On Friday, the B.C. Wildfire Service reported there were 161 fires burning, with 22 of those having started on Thursday.

Since the fire season began on April 1, the BCWS has spent more than $435 million, while fires have burned through 1,080,941 hectares. The Elephant Hill fire, burning since July 7, is at 186,000 hectares.

There isn’t any rain in the forecast, so it will be a hot and dry long weekend.

Things also took a turn near Cranbrook where all scheduled flights in and out of Canadian Rockies International Airport were cancelled on Friday because of a wildfire that cropped up northeast of the city.

Earlier in the day, the provincial government extended the state of emergency through Sept. 15.

F Marek Tvrdoň (Vancouver, Kelowna, 2010-14) has signed a one-year contract with the Edinburgh Capitals (Scotland, UK Elite). Last season, with the Indy Fuel (ECHL), he had seven goals and five assists in 21 games. He also had six goals and 12 assists in 24 games with Nitra (Slovakia, Extraliga). . . .

D Sebastian Owuya (Medicine Hat, 2010-11) has signed a one-year contract with Södertälje (Sweden, Allsvenskan) after a successful tryout. Last season, he had four goals and 23 assists in 39 games with Sundsvall (Sweden, Division 1). . . .

F Ryan Hollweg (Medicine Hat, 1999-2004) has signed a one-year extension with Plzeň (Czech Republic, Extraliga). He didn’t play last year due to complications after knee surgery. According to the club, there were “infections.”. . . . In 2015-16, he had two assists in 24 games.

In Everett, the Vancouver Giants opened exhibition play with a 3-1 victory over the Seattle Thunderbirds. . . . The Giants got a goal and an assist from each of Brendan Semchuk and Owen Hardy as they took period leads of 1-0 and 3-0 over the WHL’s defending champions. . . . Seattle was 1-9 on the PP; Vancouver was 1-6. . . . Seattle F Nikita Malukhin didn’t play in the third period after suffering an undisclosed injury. . . . Vancouver G Todd Scott started and stopped all 14 shots he saw through 29:59. Trent Miner came on to stop eight of nine shots. . . . Seattle G Cole Schwebius went the distance, with 30 saves. . . .

In Everett, D Matthew Quigley and D Clay Hanus each had three assists to lead the Portland Winterhawks to a 7-3 victory over the Spokane Chiefs. . . . The Winterhawks got two goals from F Reece Newark. . . . Spokane F Hudson Elynuik drew a kneeing major and game misconduct at 16:08 of the first period for a hit on Hanus. . . . Portland was 4-9 on the PP; Spokane was 1-4. . . . G Shane Farkas stopped 26 shots for Portland, while Spokane’s Dawson Weatherill turned aside 34. . . . D John Ludvig was in Portland’s lineup, which would indicate that he has signed a WHL contract. From Kamloops, he had five goals and 10 assists in 17 games with the junior B Kamloops Storm last season. Ludvig, 17, is the son of former NHLer Jan Ludvig (New Jersey, Buffalo, 1982-89).

In Everett, the Tri-City Americans got three goals from each of F Nolan Yaremko and F Sasha Mutala as they beat the Silvertips, 9-4. . . . The Americans got four assists from F Brett Leason, with F Morgan Geekie adding two goals and an assist. . . . F Patrick Bajkov had two goals and an assist for the Silvertips. . . . Tri-City was 1-4 on the PP; Everett was 0-4. . . . G Beck Warm went the distance for the victory, stopping 35 shots. . . . Everett G Dorrin Luding made 26 saves. . . .

In Regina, F Cameron Hebig’s shorthanded goal at 7:10 of the third period broke a 2-2 tie as the Saskatoon Blades beat the Swift Current Broncos, 3-2. . . . F Arthur Miller had pulled the Broncos even with a PP goal just 57 seconds earlier. . . . Hebig, who missed all of last season with concussion-related issues, also had an assist. . . . Saskatoon was 1-6 on the PP; Swift Current was 1-8. . . . G Joel Grzybowski stopped 27 shots to earn the victory over Joel Hofer, who made 29 saves. . . .

In Red Deer, F Kody McDonald broke a 2-2 tie at 15:55 of the third period to give the Prince George Cougars a 3-2 victory over the Edmonton Oil Kings. . . . The Cougars got their other two goals from F Vladislav Mikhalchuk, a freshman from Minsk, Belarus. . . . F Jared Bethune had two assists for the winners. . . . D Conner McDonald had a goal and an assist for Edmonton, which was 2-4 on the PP. . . . Prince George was 1-4. . . . The Cougars started G Tavin Grant, who stopped all 12 shots he faced, and finished with Brock Hamm, who was 10-for-12 in 30:38. . . . Edmonton starter Travis Child stopped 16 of 17 shots in 29:22, with reliever Boston Bilous coming on to stop 11 of 13. . . .

In Red Deer, F Kristian Reichel struck for three goals to lead the Rebels to a 5-3 victory over the Calgary Hitmen. . . . Reichel, 19, is from Most, Czech Republic. He is the son of former NHLer Robert Reichel (Calgary, New York Islanders, Phoenix, Toronto, 1990-2004). . . . Red Deer D Alexander Alexeyev had two assists in what was his first game since he suffered a knee injury on Jan. 28. . . . F Brandon Hagel of the Rebels, who left the team’s Wednesday intrasquad game after taking a hit to a knee, was in the lineup and drew two assists. . . . Calgary was 0-2 on the PP; Red Deer was 1-6. . . . Red Deer G Ethan Anders allowed three goals on 18 shots over two periods, with Lasse Petersen coming on to stop nine shots in the third. . . . Calgary G Nick Schneider stopped 27 shots. . . .

In Kamloops, F Erik Miller’s two goals led the Blazers to a 5-3 victory over the Victoria Royals. . . . With the Sandman Centre still being used as an evacuee reception centre, the game was played at the McArthur Island Sport and Events Centre on the city’s North Shore. . . . Miller broke a 2-2 with a PP goal at 1:35 of the third period. . . . F Garrett Pilon added the home team’s fourth goal at 3:04. . . . F Jared Legien scored twice for the Royals. . . . Veteran F Quinn Benjafield of the Blazers saw his first action since suffering an undisclosed injury on the first day of training camp. . . . Victoria was 2-5 on the PP; Kamloops was 2-6. . . . G Dylan Ferguson stopped 25 shots to earn the victory. . . . Royals starter Dylan Myskiw allowed two goals on 17 shots in 30:35. Brock Gould finished up, stopping 21 of 24 shots in 29:25.

The NAHL’s Corpus Christi IceRays are working to help their corner of the world recover and rebuild after the destruction caused boy Hurricane Harvey. With that in mind, the IceRays have started the Harvey Relief Virtual Sellout.

From the website:

“The Harvey Relief Virtual Sellout is a donation-based incentive drive centered around donating funds directly helping victims and areas while providing an outlet for the people of the Coastal Bend for a specific upcoming IceRays game. The objective is to create a hub for members of the hockey community, those outside of the Coastal Bend and around the area to join efforts in assisting those in need from Hurricane Harvey.”

D Oleg Sosunov, who is from Ryazan, Russia, has signed with the WHL’s Moose Jaw Warriors. . . . He was a sixth pick by the Tampa Bay Lightning in the NHL’s 2016 draft and has signed a pro contract. Sosunov stands 6-foot-8 and weighs 235 pounds. In the photo in the tweet, he is standing next to Moose Jaw head coach Tim Hunter, who is 6-foot-2. . . . Sosunov is expected to make his Moose Jaw debut in an exhibition game today (Saturday) against the host Regina Pats.

The Medicine Hat Tigers have signed German F Mick Kohler to a WHL contract. Kohler, from Bonn, was selected in the CHL’s 2017 import draft. . . . Last season, he played for Kolner EC’s U-19 side, putting up 16 goals and 44 assists in 31 games. He also had two goals and two assists in 20 games with Dresdner Eislowen of the DEL2. . . . The Tigers also signed G Kaeden Lane, who will turn 16 on Oct. 10. A list player, he spent last season with the Burnaby Winter Club’s Elite 15 team. He was 8-3-1, 2.30, .922 and was named the division’s top goaltender.

The Regina Pats have signed D Marco Creta, 17, to a WHL contract. Creta has been in the Pats’ training camp as a free-agent invitee. From Oak Bluff, Man., he played last season with the MJHL’s Virden Oil Capitals, putting up two goals and 11 assists in 57 games.

The Edmonton Oil Kings have signed three players — D Logan Dowhaniuk, D Aidan Lawson and F David Kope. . . . Dowhaniuk, from Camrose, Alta., was a second-round selection in the 2017 bantam draft. Last season, he had 27 goals and 29 assists in 36 games with the bantam AAA Camrose Red Wings. . . . Last season, the 6-foot-4 Lawson, 16, had 13 goals and nine assists in 15 games with the Cache Valley Wild, a Utah high school team. . . . Kope, from Edmonton, had seven goals and 14 assists in 34 games with the midget AAA Edmonton Canadians last season. He was an eighth-round pick in the 2015 WHL bantam draft.

The Prince George Cougars have signed G Isaiah DiLaura, 17, and F Brendan Boyle, 16. . . . The 6-foot-2, 200-pound DiLaura played last season at Lakeville South High School in Minnesota, going 1.89, .914 in 22 games. The Cougars selected him in the eighth round of the 2015 bantam draft. . . . DiLaura is one of four goaltenders with the Cougars, the others being Brock Hamm, 20; Tavin Grant, 19; and Taylor Gauthier, 16. . . . Boyle, from Calgary, now lives in Lake Country, B.C. He had 10 goals and 15 assists in 28 games with the Pursuit of Excellence Elite 15s last season. . . . D Cole Beamin, 16, returned to his home in Saskatoon after suffering a knee injury in training camp. Beamin, who turns 16 on Oct. 11, was a second-round selection by the Cougars in the WHL’s 2016 bantam draft.

F Ethan Price, 20, has joined the USHL’s Omaha Lancers after spending the past four seasons in the WHL. . . . Omaha acquired his rights from the Lincoln Stars for a conditional selection in the USHL’s 2018 draft. . . . Price, who is from Lincoln, had eight goals and 10 assists in 70 games with the Victoria Royals last season. . . . He had four goals and four assists in 67 games with the Portland Winterhawks as a freshman in 2013-14. He split the next season between the Winterhawks and Lincoln, before joining the Royals for 2015-16. He had 11 goals and 15 assists in 70 games in that season.

The CHL has suspended F Antoine Lessard, 18, for eight games for anti-doping violation. According to a news release: “The violation resulted from a urine sample collected during in-competition doping control (in) March. The sample revealed the presence of methylphenidate and metabolites, a stimulant on the list of banned substances.” . . . Lessard had six goals and three assists in 63 games as a freshman with the Victoriaville Tigres last season. Under terms of the suspension, he will miss the first eight games of the 2017-18 regular season. . . . QMJHL commissioner Gilles Courteau, from the same news release: “The player was very co-operative throughout the process. After we gathered his explanations and evaluated his case, we understand that he now has a medical reason to make use of this medication. However, he did not have any diagnosis or prescription in his name when he carried out his anti-doping control. Several medications, including those for attention deficit disorder, contain substances that are on the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) prohibited list. Given this situation, we realize the importance of continuing to educate our teams about the risks involved if a player consumes a prohibited substance . . .”

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If you’re looking for information on WHL teams and their training camp rosters, visit Small Thoughts At Large, the blog maintained by Alan Caldwell. . . . You will find it all right here.

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